


I'm here if you need me

by lovemutt



Category: Saints Row
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Canonical Character Death, Crying, Death, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/F, Grief/Mourning, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-06
Updated: 2020-10-06
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:53:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26850199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovemutt/pseuds/lovemutt
Summary: Viper Ace has been in this city less than a month, and she's already lost her closest friend. Her brother has been busy making connections for them, trying to get the Saints a real hold in Steelport, and what has Viper been doing? Nothing. She's been useless, and she knows everyone knows it, especially Tasha motherfuckin' King, and if she didn't before, well... She certainly did now.
Relationships: Tasha King/Viper Ace





	I'm here if you need me

It was 2am in Steelport, and Downtown was busy as it always was despite the time. Flashes of purple flashed up and down sidewalks as Saints patrolled the little land they could stake a real claim to, and even then it was a newfound power stemming from their selfless leaders taking the Morningstar’s penthouse right out from under them. Literally. They threw the bodies off the roof, city cleanup had a hell of a time.

Few things had changed in the week since that little mission, though one thing was made very clear: The Saints were not going to back down. Tasha King could respect that drive, the want to be the biggest and baddest in the city because that was her once upon a time. After banging led to loss after loss, she snapped to the realization that she couldn’t do that and expect her life to be anything less than misery-- Still, she had made a name for herself that almost anyone could respect, just like her dad did back in the day before the Saints ran him out of Stilwater.

Look, she wasn’t bitter for her old man, Benjamin King had done damn well for himself in the following years, but the anger leftover from watching him look at Stilwater for the last time before he boarded her onto a private jet still nagged at her when she saw those two good-for-nothin’ Saints. Still… They were trying. They were trying so hard, they went looking for Tasha herself, dug around until they found her house in New Colvin, and went as formal as gangs can get to get her attention and ask for help.

Them, big-time celebrities riding on the coattails of the media’s new obsession with mayhem and violence to make a name for themselves, asking little ol’ Tasha King for help taking Steelport from that Belgian prick and his...weirdly hot foot soldiers. In the end, she said yes, if for no reason than to get some dramatics out of the way for if they fucked up and she got to betray them.

Tasha tapped her foot as the elevator hauled it’s way up to the penthouse, vertigo hitting her and disappearing as she came to an abrupt stop that nearly staggered her. She hated this thing, they needed to get it fixed, but she knew they wouldn’t. She stepped out of the elevator, expecting to walk into the penthouse and be greeted with yet another wave of barely dressed women and enough alcohol to kill an elephant and enough lackeys to take over a country, but the entire floor seemed… different than all the previous times. Not a stripper in sight, no Ace sibling drinking themselves into liver failure, various Saints quietly minding their own business as they idled around the Penthouse, soaking in a well-earned break.

To say she was confused would be… an understatement. She gets a cab all this way, leaving her kid with a babysitter and everything, and when she gets here there’s not even anything cool going on? Tasha pulled out her phone, absentmindedly fiddling with a braid that had fallen over her shoulder as she drug up the message the Big One sent her… Nick, that’s right, his name was Nick, it said so on his contact, ‘Nick Ace’.

Last message sent to her, ‘Stop by the place, got some shit you might want to know about.’

Alright, so then where was the big bag of bricks? She looked around the Saints HQ, shuffling towards the staircase to her left, her pink slippers squeaking against the hard floor. A man in a purple Saints hoodie was leaning casually against the wall towards the bottom, and Tasha stared at the back of his head for a few seconds before she called down to him, startling nearly everyone on the floor as her voice seemed to grow louder than music idly playing over the speakers.

He whirled around, a look of exhaustion in his eyes as he stared up at the retired leader, and after a few idle seconds he cleared his throat, “Shit, Ms. King, didn’t hear ya come in.” He stammered out.

“It’s cool, where’s Nick?” She put her hands in her hoodie pocket.

He seemed uncomfortable hearing that name, and Tasha had to fight off the urge to roll her eyes. 

“Eh, the Boss had to pop out for a bit, puttin’ the hurt on the Morningstar, but the other Boss is in her room if--”

“Thanks, I’m gonna go see Viper then.” Tasha turned to her left, following the railing that led right to the bedroom door. Pausing just outside it, Tasha gave a cursory knock before she barged right in, being effectively blinded by how dark it was in this damned little room as she stumbled in and shut the door behind her.

In an instant, she realized several things at once, and a clear image of what was happening was formed in her mind as her eyes searched the darkroom. There was the gentle sound of crying from somewhere in the room, the lights were shut off, and scattered around where the light from outside could touch was what seemed like dozens of purple shirts, Johnny Gat bobble heads, 3rd Street Chains, you name it. As her eyes adjusted, landing on the darkened figure of Viper as she lay curled up on her rug, Tasha felt as if she knew exactly what had happened. The Morningstar had hurt someone, hadn’t they?

“Uh,” Tasha started without thinking, clenching her jaw as she swallowed and tried to think of something to say, “V...Viper? Hey girl, you good?” She called, listening to the shuddered heaves from Viper as she tried to reply.

In a cracked, quiet voice, the Saints leader replied, “Fu-Fuck, I-I’m sorry King, I’m a lil…” Another round of sobs cut her off before she caught her breath again, “W-We got...we got…!”

Tasha was already next to her, leaning down towards the edge of the rug and seeing Viper’s face so much more now that her eyes were adjusted, the minimal light from far off screens and street lamps finding its way all the way here just to make the boss’ eyes shine.

Tasha King knew that face well, knew the panic in her voice, and she found herself laying down too, just a few feet apart from Viper with her legs curled up, head tucked against her elbow as she sympathetically looked at the other woman. 

“Johnny’s funeral,” Viper finally managed to say, a hand covering her mouth, “F-Fuck, why, why Johnny?”

Tasha couldn’t answer as Viper brought her knees up nearly to her chest, hiding her face as she cried in front of quite possibly one of the most powerful women in Steelport, a business partner, someone who was not her friend. Even with all those thoughts in her head, of who Tasha was, what this could do to her reputation, all she could think of Johnny. The gunshots from the cabin, never finding a body, the pain in Shaundi’s eyes every day, Nick’s cold shoulder, and his unique way of grieving, and Viper Ace could not be bothered to care that a King was in front of her, watching her throw a fit.

“I get you, girl.” Tasha murmured, “I got my right-hand man shot, it’s why I got out.” It didn’t comfort Viper, and maybe nothing ever would. Tasha knew for a fact that she still lay awake some nights, remembering blood soaking blonde hair, Vice Kings yellow-stained red, the disappointed tone in her dad’s voice when he heard what she’d been up to.

It would take so much more to comfort her right now, and Tasha couldn’t offer any of that up to her. So she just lay across from her, averting her eyes out of nothing but silent respect, “I’m here, Ace. I’ll be here as long as you need me.” She murmured in between Viper’s cries, and she meant every word. She’d stay all night.


End file.
